Five-way hingeless ventilator



July 22,A 1969 D. A. KELLY ETAL FIVB-WAY HINGELEss vEN'rILAToR 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 12, 1887 FIG. 3

FIG. 4

z I 4 z Invenors:

Daniel Allco Kelly John E.Bernafd, Jr. WWW

their Attorney July 22, 1969 D. A. KELLY ETAL. 3.456,571

FIVB-WAY HINGELESS VENTILATO R Filed Jan. 12, 1987 z sneexs-sneet z FIG. 7

w Inventors:

John E. Beffnard, Jr.

'lheif AHorney Daniel Allcott Kellyv United States Patent 3,456,571 FIVE-WAY HINGELESS VENTILATOR Daniel Allcott Kelly, 312 Broad St., and John E. Bernard,

Jr., 1804 Skycoe Drive, both of Salem, Va. 24153 Filed Jan. 12, 1967, Ser. No. 608,841 Int. Cl. B60j 9/00 U.S. Cl. 98-2 11 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to hingeless ventilators for ventilating truck cabs or other enclosures.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a multi-way hingeless ventilator having a closure member which is openable in a multiplicity of directions and selectively settable in any position over its range of movements.

Another object of the invention is to provide a multiway hingeless ventilator having a generally rectangular closure member which is openable either from any side or simultaneously from all sides and is guided and yieldably resisted in all of its movements so as to remain in any position in which it is selectively set.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear he'reinafter in the detailed description, be particularly pointed out in the appended claims and be illustrated inthe accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is an inside plan view of a preferred embodiment of the ventilator of the present invention applied to a wall of a truck cab or other enclosure;

FIGURE 2 is an end elevational view on an enlarged scale of the structure of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a Vertical sectional view taken along lines 3-3 of FIGURE 1;

FIGUREl 4 is a Vertical sectional on the scale of FIG- URE 2 view taken along lines 4--4 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURES 5, 6 and 7 are side elevational views of the ventilator on a reduced scale showing the closure member of the ventilator respectively in closed, fully opened, and end opened positions; and

FIGURE 8 is an end elevational view of the ventilator on the scale of FIGURES 5, 6 and 7 showing the closure member in side opened position.

Referring now in detail to the drawings in which like reference characters designate like parts, the improved multi-way ventilator of this invention, although otherfixable to and in place forming part of a wall 2 of a cab or other vehicle enclosure or compartment (not shown) about an aperture 3 therein.. The frame 1, itself, has a generally rectangular, preferably oblong, opening and bounds that opening by a preferably continuous hp or flange 5 out-or upstanding substantially normal or perpendicular to the plane of the frame's base 6.

The ventilator's closure member or door 7 has a flat -body of the same shape as the opening 4, which in closed position fits against the outer end of the lip 5, with the joint therebetween preferably made airtight by a resilient pad 9 conveniently secured to the under or inner face 10 of the body. In the same closed position, an in-or downstanding peripheral skirt 11 on the closure member 7 about the body 8, overlaps and surrounds, encircles or embraces the outstanding marginal lip 5 on the frame 1.

The closure member 7 is adapted to be swung open from any of its four sides, which, for the illustrated oblong closure member, are its sides 12 and ends 13, using the overlap between the skirt 11 and lip 5 at the opposite side to substantially fix the swinging axis, and also to be opened simultaneously from all sides by being moved rectlinearly normal to the plane of the frames base 6. To impart these movements to it, the closure member 7 has, inside the opening 4 beyond the base 6 of the frame 1, a positioning rod 14, which is disposed substantially parallel to the body 8 and extends across the opening 4 along one, here its longitudinal dimension and is centered on the opening along its other, here lateral dimension. The positioning rod 4 is suitably connected intermediate its ends to the body 8, as by the illustrated hook 15 which is fixed to and centered transversely on the underface 10 of the body and extends substantially normal thereto through the opening 4. Releasably hooking, coupling or connecting the positioning rod 14 to the body 8, the hook 15 preferably is received in a central annular groove 16 in the rod to restrain the latter against axial shifting. Throughout the movements of the closure member 7, the ends 17 of the positioning rod 12 engage guide members or guides 18 fixed to and in or downstanding from the base 6 at opposite sides or extremities, here ends, of the opening 4.

Preferably duplicate and disposed parallel to each other and centered laterally on the opening 4, the guide members 18 are each conveniently formed of preferably duplicate parts 19, which, suitably, are stamped from fiat spring steel. Generally of V-shape, each guide part 19 has a remote or opposite leg 20, whose foot 21 is fixed to the base 6, and a contiguous or proximal leg 22 which adjoins or confronts the like leg of the other guide part. The inner or rod-engaging faces 23 and 24 of the remote and proximal legs 20 and 22, respectively, are the guideways along which the ends 17 of the positioning rod 14 slide in the various movements of the closure member 7. While the faces 23 and 24 presented by the guide parts 19 to the positioning rod 14 are `flat, they are diiferently contoured. The guide face 23 of each remote leg 20 is arcuately and preferably cylindrically convex and substantially concentric with or struck about the opposite side of the opening 4. By contrast, the guide faces24 of the proximal legs 22 are for the most part straight and substantially normal to the plane of the base 6.

With its pair of guide parts 19 so formed and the confronting faces 24 of the proximal legs 22 substantially in contact over most of their length and resisted in spreading by the spring pressure or force then exerted on them byt he remote legs 20, each guide member 18 is m effect a centrally bifurcated member having a central slot or bifnrcation 25 bounded by the inner faces 24 and disposed substantially normal to the plane of the base 6. Rather than free, the upper or outer ends 26 of the adjoining legs 22 of the guide members 18 preferably are fixed to the base 6 and it is also preferred that these legs of each member be spaced substantially adjacent those ends-'totprovide'between theirinner faces"" 24 a set r socket 27. Constructed in this manner, each guide member 18 presents for engagement by the adjoining or related end 17 of the positioning rod 14, a guide surface 28 having as its removed or separated portions the faces 23 and as its adjoining or contiguous portions the faces 24.

For both riding on the exposed under or inner faces 23 of the remote legs and between the confronting inner faces 24 of the adjoining legs 22 of each guide member 18, the positioning or guide rod 14 preferably has its 'ends`I7-flattened to form tongues. Of a width to ride across the months or entrances 29 of the slots when presentinga side thereto, the tongues 17, when turned edgewise to the slots, as by a thumb lever or tab 31 conveniently fixed to the rod adjacent one end, are adapted to be' inserted into and slide in the slots to their full depth.

Anchored at its center to the closure member 7 by the hook or anchor bar 15, the preferred positioning rod 14 preferably is a spring rod, which, when the sides 30 of its tongues or ends 17 engage the underfaces 23 of the remote legs 20, is centrally bent, flexed or bowed up- Wardly toward the closure member to provide the tensile 'force for holding the closure member against the frame 1, both in its closed position and when it is swung about the sides 12 of the opening 4 paralleling the rod. Conversely, when it is desired to swing the closure member about either end of the opening 4, the positioning rod 14 is turned to align its end tongues 17 wtih the slots 25 and the tongue at the end from which the closure member is to be opened is slid into its slot to the desired extent. If, instead of one, both end tongues 17 are slid into their slots 25, the closure member can be moved perpendicular or normal to the plane of the base 6 up to the fully opened position in which the tongues are at the upper extremities of the slots.

The closure member 7 thus is capable of being moved in five directions, two in which it is swung about either 'of the sides 12 parallel to the positioning rod 14, another two in which it is swung about either of its ends 13 nor- 'mal to the positioning rod and a fifth in which it is moved normal to the plane of the base 6 for opening the opening simultaneously from all sides. Guided in all of its movements by the engagement between the positioning rod 14 and the guide surfaces 28 on the guide members 18, the closure member is yieldably resisted in its movements by the same engagement by virtue of the spring pressure exerted by the rod against the guide members or, when the tongues 17 are in the slots 25 by the spring pressure exerted by the rod against the guide members or, when the tongues 17 are in the slots 25, by the spring pressure exerted by the adjoining legs 22 of each pair in yieldably clamping the related tongue 17 therebetween.

While the closure member 7 can be given its various 'movements using the positioning rod 14 as a handle, it usually will be more convenient to have a separate handle 32. In the form of a bail, the preferred handle 32 has a :central or intermediate handle or web portion 33, disposed outwardly of or beyond the positioning rod 14 and 'substantially parallel to the closure member 7, and arms 34 upstanding from opposite ends of the handle portion and fixed at their upper ends to the underface 10 of the closure member adjacent its ends. Longitudinally elongated' slots 35 in the arms 34, through which the positioning, rod 14 extends, prevent the rod from twisting in the hook 15, without interfering with the rodis flexing.

Centered laterally on the closure member 7, the pre- "Th'enslvesfixed to therlegs 34, the guide studs 36, when 'ferred bail 32 has on the outsides of its arms 34, beyond the V'ends 17 of the positioning rod 14, conveniently flat guide, studs 36 aligned edgewise with the slots 25 in the guide members 18 in the closure member's closed position and, with the tongues 17 of the positioning rod, -fittable into and slideable in those 'slots in the movement of the closure member normal to the plane of the base 6.

received in the slots 25, prevent sideways canting of the closure member and, on reaching the seats 27 at the upper extremity of the slots, cooperate with the tongues 17 and the clamping pressure exerted by the adjoining legs 22 of the guide members 18 thereon for holding the closure member in fully open position.

From the above detailed description it will be apparent that there has been provided a hingeless ventilator, the closure member of which is openable in any of a multiplicity of directions relative to the opening closed thereby and is yieldably held in any position in which it is selectively set. It shouldbe understood that the described and disclosed embodiment is merely exemplary of the invention and that all modifications are intended to be included that do not depart from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

Having described our invention, we claim:

1. A multi-Way hingeless ventilator for ventilatng a compartment through an opening in a wall thereof, comprising a closure member at one side of said wall for closing said opening, positioning means at an opposite side of said wall and connected through said opening to said closure member for movement in unison therewith, and guide means fixed to said opposite side of said wall and projeeting therefrom away from said closure member, said guide means being engaged by said positioning means and so constructed and arranged as to cooperate therewith in mounting said closure member on said wall for opening movement relative thereto in more than two directions, said engagement of said positioning and guide means being spring-urged for yieldably holding said closure member in any selected position over the range of said relative movement thereof.

2. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 1 wherein the closure member is generally rectangular and selectively openable from any side and simultaneously from all sides.

3. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 2 wherein the closure member in opening from any side is swingable about an opposite side against the frame and in simultaneously opening from all sides is movable substantially normal to the wall.

4. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 3 wherein the positioning means is a spring rod extending longitudinally of and centered laterally on and cen- -trally connected to a closure member, the guide means are guide members fixed to a base of the frame at opposite ends of the opening, said guide members present for engagement by opposite ends of said rod guide surfaces extending laterally of said opening, and said guide surfaces each have arcuately convex removed portions and confronting adjoining portions.

5. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 4 wherein each removed portion is struck substantially `about an opposite side -of the opening, and the adjoining portions of each guide surface define a slot extendin'g substantially normal to a base of the frame.

6. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 5 wherein the ends of the rod are flattened for sidewise engagement wtih the arcuate removed portions and end- Wise receipt in the slots.

7. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 6 wherein on receipt of the rods ends in the slots the devfiningy portions of the guide surfaces engage and are springurged against the ends.

' 8. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to Vclaim vincluding lever means on the rod foralternately turning the endsthereof sidewise and endwiseto .the guide surfaces- 9. A multi-way hingeless ventilator according to claim 7 including a bail having arms fixed to and instanding from and centered laterally on the closure member for use as a handle in moving the closure member relative are spaced adjacent inner ends thereof for seating the related of the rod ends and tabs in the fully open position of the closure member.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,102,464 9/1963 Kelly et al.

MEYER PERLIN, Primary Examiner 

